Simply months after the Apple Watch was released, there are lots if not numerous different stand choices offered on the market. The Bloc Power Bank from Boostcase stands apart due to its special long, flat shape and the fact that it has a built-in battery pack that can charge the Apple Watch while on the go.

Made from solid aluminum, the Bloc Power Bank comes in Silver, Area Gray, Gold, Rose Gold, Wood, and Stainless Steel, to match all of the various Apple Watch choices that are available. I went hands-on with the silver aluminum model to see how it determines up to other available stands on the marketplace and whether the integrated battery is an useful function.

Design and Setup

As with all Apple Watch stands, the Bloc is developed to work with the charging cable that ships with the Apple Watch, and thus it does not consist of a built-in charging cable television. Size sensible, the Bloc is simply under 10 inches long, just over half an inch thick, and two inches wide. It weighs 408 grams, or 0.90 pounds with both the battery pack attached and the Apple Watch charger in place.

If you’re thinking that sounds both unwieldy and heavy, that’s a right assumption. At 10 inches long and nearly a pound in weight, the Bloc isn’t precisely what I ‘d call portable, since it’s not going to fit conveniently in a knapsack or a bag. Since it’s flat and rectangle-shaped, the Bloc can just be used with open-loop bands like the Sport Band, the Modern Buckle, and the Classic Fastening.
It’s not going to be appropriate for the closed-loop bands like the Milanese Loop, the Leather Loop, or the Link Bracelet since the Apple Watch has to be able to lay flat on the surface to charge. It’s well-crafted and tough, and the battery charger is a little raised to avoid the Apple Watch from coming into contact with the aluminum. Because it lays flat, the Bloc is not going to support iOS 9’s upcoming Nightstand Mode, a major unfavorable if you plan to make use of the Apple Watch as a nighttime clock.

At this point, I’ve tested a number of Apple Watch stands and I can state without a doubt that the Bloc was the most tough and frustrating to put together. The Apple Watch battery charger is placed in a little rubber cap and fitted into a slot at the top of the Bloc, then the cord is wound through the bottom of the Bloc in a maze-like way prior to the USB portion connecteds into the consisted of battery pack (which is removable).

Winding the cable through the Bloc took me numerous tries because it needs a precise fit. The cable has to be extremely tight and loaded down all the method into the grooves in the Bloc stand, which is finished with a little tool. When the cable television isn’t really lined up precisely, it’s not going to reach the USB port, and while it might sound simple to wind a cable, let me tell you, it’s not.

In reality, winding that cable through the Bloc felt like I was doing a difficult puzzle and it took a great 20 minutes for me to figure out I required to ignore the instructions and wind from the USB side and reverse from there. I used a 1m Apple Watch cord but if you have a 2m cable, you’re going to need to do the winding process two times over for double the aggravation.

Offered the extreme cable management in the Bloc Power Bank, I ‘d prepare to purchase an extra cable television for it. Most users are not going to want to get rid of the cable television over and over once again for usage without the Bloc, so consider it completely connected. I’m also not sure exactly what twisting and pulling an Apple Watch cable television around all of those curves does to it, however I make certain it’s not great.

The Battery Load

Once the cable television remains in place, the Apple Watch and the battery pack consisted of with the Bloc are charged together through a micro-USB cable that ships with the item. At 2,000 mAh, Boostcase guarantees the Bloc will be able to charge the Apple Watch to full four times over, which I found to be real in my testing.

With my 38mm Apple Watch, I actually got practically 5 complete charges from the Bloc case, but it may be closer to four charges for the 42mm Apple Watch, which has a somewhat larger battery. That suggests I might possibly take the Bloc case on a journey where I didn’t have power and have a practical Apple Watch for almost a week, but with the weight and size of the Bloc case, I’m unsure I ‘d desire to do that.

Battery level on the Bloc is noticeable through 3 LEDs on the side of the device beside the micro-USB port, offering a rough estimate of just how much battery is left.

Bottom Line

Boostcase’s Bloc Power Bank is an enigma. It’s an item that has a built-in battery that can charge the Apple Watch when you’re away from house, but it’s not portable sufficient making that rewarding, nor is there any kind of travel case included. It’s terrific on a desk since it’s slim, but on a desk, that built-in battery isn’t precisely beneficial, and it’s expensive compared to other choices.

I do not know who would use this item since it seems to be fixing a problem that doesn’t exist. As somebody who travels a lot, the shape and the weight of the Bloc remove it as something I ‘d pack since it’s a whole lot heavier than just a basic Apple Watch battery charger. I may utilize it at my desk, however its inability to work with closed-loop bands limits its effectiveness.

The built-in battery can be eliminated from the Bloc and utilized on a standalone basis with an Apple Watch or iPhone, but I’m not exactly sure why anybody would wish to use this option over a devoted battery pack. In fact, if I were to travel and need additional juice for my Apple Watch, I ‘d much rather bring my standalone Apple Watch battery charger and something like the Mophie Powerstation Plus, since that would have to do with the very same price and a lot more portable.

Aesthetically, the Bloc is attractive and its long design is special, so I might see somebody buying it as a desktop battery charger, however for the majority of users, there are more useful, economical Apple Watch stands offered.

Pros:

Solid building

Lots of color alternatives

Battery charges Apple Watch to full 4 times

Cons:

Heavy

Oddly formed

Does not deal with all bands

Expensive

Discouraging to establish

Does not deal with Nightstand Mode

Ways to Buy

Boostcase’s Bloc Power Bank for Apple Watch can be bought from the Boostcase website. There are six various surfaces available, each priced at $$ 79.95.